2023 is well underway and as we embark on a year set to take our Woodstock Improvement District to new heights, we introduce you to our core team and share some important reminders from WID and the City.
2022 has been a year for celebrating successes for Woodstock Improvement District and tackling new and ongoing challenges. With our new five-year business plan term commencing in July 2022 we renew our commitment to providing top-up services to the City of Cape Town with a special focus on public safety, urban cleaning and management, continuing to lead the charge in the continual improvement of Woodstock as a residential and business area.
As we round up 2022 following our recent AGM held in November, we recap on the year’s work, successes and statistics.
Woodstock Improvement District’s achievements of the last year are a testament to the team’s commitment, experience and increased on-the-ground presence – led by the capable hands of Geocentric, who have been working with city improvement district initiatives since 2001 and responsible for a total of thirteen of Cape Town’s improvement districts from Salt River through to Strand, Tyger Valley and Wynberg.
“The rollercoasting aftermath of Covid lockdowns steadily calmed down in 2022, yet conditions remained difficult as significant increases in the cost of living and the continuous challenges of load-shedding remained at the forefront,” says Gene Lohrentz, director of Geocentric.
“In the face of these new challenges, the WID board and management team have remained steadfast in our commitment to providing high-quality top-up services in Woodstock. Embracing and implementing adaptability into our vision now seems entrenched in our day-to-day operations as well as our strategic thinking.”
Rounding up the financial year, Woodstock 2022 has seen some great results from WID, our city improvement district.
The Woodstock Improvement District works together with residents, local businesses and urban management specialists to create a rich urban environment where the Woodstock community can thrive.
Together with the City’s Cleansing Department and the SAPS, we provide public safety and urban cleansing services to boost the sanitation and safety of the Woodstock area. View Woodstock 2022 Map
Working towards our most important goals – public safety, cleaning and urban management – here are some of our achievements for the last quarter of 2022.
Visit our Contact page for more details and our About page for more information about WID.
Visit capetown.gov.za for more City of Cape Town Emergency Numbers.
Did you know? Annually, over 180 000 tons of waste are cleared from illegal dumping hot spots! That costs the city, and you as the taxpayer, a staggering R350 million a year just in clean-up. In other words, cleaning illegal dumping costs 20 times more than collecting waste from wheelie bins. That is why to create a clean, healthy and safe community we take our work tackling illegal dumping very seriously.
“Illegal dumping is a severe problem that puts our community at risk of injury and illness and pollutes our ecosystem. In addition, illegal dumpsites can serve as magnets for other criminal activities,” says Gene Lohrentz, CEO of urban management company Geocentric.
The saying goes that ‘Great floods flow from simple sources’. As we prepare for the harshness of the howling gales and pelting rain that make up Cape Town storms, we couldn’t agree more. Many of us are even more conscious now of the pivotal role that winter preparation plays in city management – and what the lack of it can look like – in the aftermath of the 2022 KZN floods.
“A combination of terrain challenges, insufficient or ill-maintained infrastructure and increased population density are the main contributors to flooding problems,” says Gene Lohrentz, CEO of urban management company Geocentric, and current management team of the Woodstock Improvement District.
The Board of the WID has taken the initiative to extend the CCTV camera network of the WID. The proposed intervention will focus on supporting the current public safety and urban management activities thereby contributing to securing the area and driving incidents of crime down.
The project will focus on the implementation of additional Static and PTZ cameras.
The detailed Request for Proposal document can be found here.
Continue readingAfter a challenging 2021, filled with great uncertainty and change globally, many of us are looking forward to wrapping things up for a well deserved holiday with family and friends. Ensuring that your property is secure and your business protected is the best Christmas gift you can give yourself and will give you the peace of mind that will allow you to relax and recuperate.
Good news for Woodstock and the Woodstock Improvement District. The recent AGM, held on 3 November 2021 at the WID offices, has seen the approval of the new 5-year term extension of the Woodstock Improvement District from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2027.
Providing top-up cleaning and security services to one of Cape Town’s oldest residential and business nodes since May 2005, the Woodstock Improvement District has been under new management since September 2020. Led by Geocentric, who have been working with city improvement district initiatives since 2001 and responsible for a total of eleven of Cape Town’s improvement districts including WID and the nearby Salt River, Maitland and Wynberg, the WID’s successes of the last year are a tribute to this team’s experience and increased on-the-ground presence with more security personnel than ever before.
It costs the City R350-million every year to clean up illegal dumping. Cleaning up illegally dumped waste is about 20 times more expensive than collecting it from individual wheelie bins, as specialised equipment, including front-end loaders, must be hired to remove the waste. That’s money that could be better used in beautifying and upgrading our shared, public spaces – rather than maintaining the status quo.
The Woodstock Improvement District (WID) Board hereby invites your company to submit a proposal for the provision of Public Safety related services as set out in the Request for Proposal document.
